Carravalseca Reserva 2018: the single-plot “pago” wine from Casa Primicia

In Laguardia, every vineyard plot has had its own name for generations, and growers say it the way you would name a neighbour. Carravalseca Reserva 2018 carries one of those names on its label, and not by chance.

Bodegas Casa Primicia makes it from grapes of a single plot in the municipality of Laguardia, in Rioja Alavesa, with a clear idea from the vineyard onwards: produce very little to concentrate a lot.

The ageing follows the same line. It spends 20 months in new French oak barrels, considerably more than the rules require of a Reserva, before finishing its rest in the bottle.

Here is the full profile so you can understand it before uncorking: what the word “pago” means, how it is made, how it tastes, what temperature to serve it at and what to put on the table.

Carravalseca Reserva 2018 within the Casa Primicia range

Casa Primicia makes several aged reds from Rioja Alavesa grapes. Three appear in this Christmas selection, and each one occupies a different step:

• Julián Madrid Reserva 2019: 100% Tempranillo from selected vineyards, 20 months in French oak, around €21.50.
• Carravalseca Reserva 2018: grapes from a single plot, new French barrels, around €26.50.
• Pensante Maturana: the winery’s rarity, made only in exceptional vintages, around €100.

Carravalseca is therefore the point at which the winery stops talking about vineyard selection in general and starts talking about a specific place.

DOCa Rioja and Rioja Alavesa

DOCa Rioja was Spain’s first designation of origin, regulated in 1925, and in 1991 it became the first to be Qualified (DOCa). It spreads across La Rioja, Álava and Navarre, on both sides of the Ebro.

It has three zones: Rioja Alta, Rioja Oriental and Rioja Alavesa. The last is the smallest and occupies the strip of Álava between the river and the Sierra de Cantabria.

The mountains act as a screen against the cold northern winds. To the south, the Ebro softens the climate, and between the two lie slopes and terraces of clay-limestone soils highly prized for Tempranillo.

What “pago” means and how to read the label

The word pago has two meanings in Spain. In the everyday speech of wine regions, a pago is a vineyard plot with its own name and character, and that is the sense Casa Primicia uses.

In law, since the Vine and Wine Act of 2003, “Vino de Pago” is also a designation-of-origin category of its own. Carravalseca does not belong to that category: it is a DOCa Rioja wine made with grapes from one specific plot.

The other key word on the label is Reserva. In Rioja, a Reserva red needs at least 36 months of ageing in barrel and bottle, with a minimum of 12 months in barrel.

To read the back label of a Rioja: the colour of the seal tells you the category at a glance: green for wines without an ageing category, red for Crianza, burgundy for Reserva and blue for Gran Reserva.

The vineyard and the grape: 70% Tempranillo and an unnamed 30%

For this wine, Casa Primicia made a careful selection of grapes within the plot and deliberately aimed for a very limited yield. Fewer bunches per vine mean more concentration in each grape.

The blend is 70% Tempranillo and 30% other varieties.

Tempranillo is the queen grape of Rioja Alavesa. It brings fruit, colour and a tannin that stands up well to long ageing in wood, exactly what a wine with this approach needs.

How it is made, step by step

The process is very carefully handled at every stage. Here are the steps, in plain words:

• Sorting table: the best bunches are picked by hand and anything not in perfect condition is discarded.
• Short cold maceration: the grapes rest at low temperature before fermenting, to draw out colour and fruit without harshness.
• Alcoholic fermentation: yeasts turn the sugar in the must into alcohol.
• Malolactic fermentation in barrel: a second fermentation that swaps the sharper malic acid for softer lactic acid.
• Racking and 20 months in new French oak barrels: the wine is separated from its lees and the long ageing begins.
• Bottle: the wine completes its ageing there before going on sale.

Carrying out the malolactic fermentation inside the barrel is not usual for every red. It has a clear advantage: wood and wine get to know each other earlier, and the oak is better integrated from the start.

Why does it matter that the barrel is new? Because a first-use barrel gives up far more aroma and tannin than a used one. With 20 months inside, the grape needs depth so it is not overwhelmed.

Tasting note for Carravalseca Reserva 2018

In the glass, stage by stage:

• Appearance: deep cherry, clean and bright.
• Nose: intense, attractive, sweet and elegant, with very ripe black fruit, cocoa and mineral notes.
• Palate: broad and tasty, with fine acidity and a lively tannin, well tamed by the wood.
• Finish: long, with the return of the sensations already present on the nose.

“Deep cherry” means the colour is intense and barely lets you see the bottom of the glass. The cocoa is the mark of the new barrel, and the acidity is what keeps so much ripe fruit from feeling heavy.

How to serve it

Serve it at 18 °C, the usual ceiling for an aged red. Going above that would let the alcohol get ahead of the fruit.

Open it half an hour beforehand or carefully pour it into a decanter. A Reserva in this style may leave some sediment, so serve it without shaking the bottle.

Choose a wide, Bordeaux-style glass. The large bowl leaves room for the black fruit and cocoa to express themselves without the wood taking over.

Sommelier’s trick: pour the first glass no more than a third full. Swirl the wine, wait a couple of minutes and smell again. The “sweet” nose appears with air.

Pairing: what to eat with a single-plot Reserva

A red with this structure calls for dishes with substance and long cooking. Here are some specific combinations:

• Lamb chops grilled over vine cuttings: the most typical dish of Álava, with just the right fat for the wine’s tannin.
• Roast pork ribs: the toasted side of the meat connects with the cocoa from the barrel.
• Oven-roasted shoulder of suckling lamb: tender meat for a broad, tasty wine.
• Venison in red wine sauce: ripe black fruit goes well with game.
• Aged Idiazabal cheese: the Basque cheese made from latxa sheep’s milk, with a smoky touch that works with the wood.

Avoid white fish and very spicy sauces. The former disappear next to the wine, and heat hardens the tannin and sharpens the sensation of alcohol.

Carravalseca versus Julián Madrid Reserva 2019

Both are Casa Primicia Reservas with 20 months in French oak, so the comparison makes itself. The differences lie in origin and wood:

• Julián Madrid Reserva 2019: 100% Tempranillo from selected vineyards, with ripe black fruit, spice, toasted notes and a dairy background.
• Carravalseca Reserva 2018: grapes from a single plot, with 30% other varieties, new barrels and a profile of cocoa and minerals.

Opening them together makes a very simple educational tasting. The first shows what the house’s Tempranillo is like, and the second what you gain by choosing a single plot and using new barrels.

Cellaring: when to open it

A 2018 with this ageing has already passed its toughest years. The wood has had time to integrate and the tannin to polish.

If you prefer to wait, store it lying down, between 12 and 15 °C, away from light and without sudden temperature changes. Over time, the fruit will give way to notes of leather, tobacco and spice.

Price and who it is for

The indicative price of Carravalseca Reserva 2018 is €26.50. On a restaurant list, as a guide, it is reasonable to find it between €45 and €65, depending on the venue.

It makes a good gift for anyone who enjoys long-aged Riojas and wants something more than a well-known brand.

A curiosity: Carravalseca is also a lagoon

The name may ring a bell if you have walked around Laguardia. Carravalseca is also one of the lagoons in the Laguardia lagoon complex, a protected natural area among vineyards.

It is a good reminder that in Rioja Alavesa the names on labels come from the map. Behind many wines there is a place name that locals have used since long before brands existed.

A Sunday table, a few lamb chops grilled over vine cuttings and a red that carries the name of its plot on the label? There are few more direct ways to travel to Laguardia without leaving home.